Donald Trump has long been critical of U.S. support for Ukraine, showing little backing during his campaign and early presidency, often pushing an “America First” agenda. He even claimed Ukraine started the war, not Russia.
However, Trump’s stance has shifted. On Monday, he promised to send more weapons to Ukraine and threatened 100% “secondary tariffs” on Russia’s trade partners if Putin doesn’t agree to a peace deal within 50 days.
According to the Financial Times, Trump privately asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy whether Ukraine could strike Moscow and St. Petersburg if supplied with long-range weapons. Zelenskyy reportedly responded, “Absolutely. We can if you give us the weapons.”
Trump also announced that billions in U.S.-made military equipment, funded by Europe and sent via NATO, would be delivered to Ukraine.
Despite this tougher tone, Trump later denied encouraging attacks on Moscow, saying, “No, he should not target Moscow.”